Silva's Gem Fires Man City To Victory At Villa

Birmingham, United Kingdom, Dec 2 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 2nd Dec, 2021 ) :Pep Guardiola said Bernardo Silva was "on another level" after the Portugal forward's sublime strike inspired a 2-1 win against Aston Villa on Wednesday.

City's trip to Villa Park was billed as Jack Grealish's return to the club he left to join the English champions in a club record �100 million ($132 million) move in the close-season.

But Grealish, a boyhood Villa fan, only played the final few minutes after coming off the bench.

Greeted with jeers and pointed chants of "Villa til I die" from the Holte End faithful, Grealish won't have enjoyed his return, but Silva will think of the fixture far more fondly.

Silva doubled City's lead with a majestic volley after Ruben Dias had put Guardiola's side ahead.

Ollie Watkins pulled one back for the hosts in the second half, but City survived a sustained onslaught to hand Steven Gerrard his first defeat in three games as Villa boss.

City's mix of guile and grit kept them in second place, just one point behind Premier League leaders Chelsea, who won 2-1 at Watford on Wednesday.

"Bernardo scored a fantastic goal. When a player has this quality it depends on them. He is a player on another level," Guardiola said.

"The game we played was fantastic. Difficult game. We knew it. Especially after conceding early in the second half, the way we reacted, we played really well."Guardiola's men have now won six in a row in all competitions despite the fitness issues that saw the Spaniard claim his team were suffering an injury "emergency" this week.